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Pollinator declines threaten global food trade

Journal articles

Developed economies such as the UK, Germany and Japan could suffer the greatest economic losses from sudden declines in pollinator populations, due to their dependence on imported crops, according to this modelling study. The paper estimates the changes in production levels and market prices that would occur for 74 animal-pollinated crops following sudden pollinator loss due to three causes: high use of pesticides; natural disasters such as drought; or countries being unable to pursue sustainable agricultural policies due to high levels of debt.

Special report on the global food price crisis

This report from IPES Food explores the factors underlying the increase in global food prices, which in April 2022 were 34% higher than a year previously. It focuses on the impacts of the Russian invasion of Ukraine as well as broader structural issues in the global food system, including heavy reliance on food imports, barriers to changes in production systems, excessive speculation in grain markets, and vicious cycles of climate change, poverty, conflict and food insecurity.

Who means what by agroecology? Why does it matter?

The UK’s National Food Strategy brought the term “agroecology” into mainstream policy discussions. This policy insight from the Food Research Collaboration traces how different definitions of the term have evolved, with varying degrees of emphasis on agroecology’s agricultural practices and political aims. The National Food Strategy defines agroecology mostly in terms of on-farm activities, rather than as inherently interlinked with wider food system shifts.

Putting climate on everyone’s table: the IPCC on food and diet

In this policy brief, the Food Research Collaboration summarises points relevant to food and diet in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Working Group 3 report, published in April 2022. The summary notes that both individual and policy-level choices about food are highly relevant to climate change and could make significant contributions to climate mitigation; that action is required on both consumption and production; that demand-side interventions can have beneficial effects for health; that individual action alone is not sufficient; and that “choice architecture” can influence demand patterns.

Assessing risk of illegally caught seafood in supply chains

This report from Friends of Ocean Action, FishWise, Global Fishing Watch and the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions discusses how seafood providers can use data to avoid illegal, unregulated or unreported fishing. It describes the first phase of the development of a “Supply Chain Risk Tool” that gathers data on fishing fleets and vessels from multiple sources and identifies potential risks.

Food Information, Communication and Education

Using European case studies, this book examines how knowledge about food is transmitted and circulated by a wide range of actors, including textbooks, the press, cookery classes, social media, bloggers, marketers, and so on.

167,000 Maasai people face eviction from ancestral land

News and resources

Maasai pastoralists are calling for international support to stop the Tanzanian government's plans to evict thousands of people from their ancestral lands in Ngorongoro and Loliondo to make way for tourism, development and wildlife hunting. In a public letter, Maasai community leaders argue that the Tanzanian government is falsely blaming livestock grazing and population growth for environmental degradation, to justify the mass evictions.

Podcast: Dr Michael Antoniou on regulating gene editing

News and resources

In this podcast by the Sustainable Food Trust, molecular geneticist Dr Michael Antoniou explains how regulation of gene editing is changing in the UK, as well as the potential health risks of gene editing.

Decoupling Desire: How can the advertising sector promote better, or less, consumption?

What is the role of food advertising in the context of net zero? In this blog post, Trish Fisher summarises a recent TABLE debate and reflects on the issue of greenwashing, alternative economic models such as B-corporations, government regulation of sustainability claims, and the challenges for the advertising industry of redefining a “good life” that is compatible with sustainability goals. This blog post is written by Trish Fisher, an intern at TABLE working on multiple projects. Currently, she is a graduate student at the University of Michigan pursuing dual master’s degrees in public policy and public health. Trish’s research interests lie at the intersection of climate, food, and health policy.